Hi all, we had our solemnization in end-May and are gratful to have Dr. Phua as our solemnizer. We came to know about Dr. Phua through our wedding planner who highly recommended him for all their clients.
As mentioned by many, Dr. Phua is a very friendly and humourous person. I was nervous about giving him a reminder call before our wedding cos I couldn't find a way which I feel comfortable to put it across. When I finally picked up my courage, he could not be contacted so I left him a message in his office voice mail. Later that day, he returned my call. After I introduced myself, he didn't not wait for me to come to the part I dreaded most, instead he asked, "So, are you prepared for your wedding on XX day at XX time?" Then he procceeded to light chat a bit which made me laugh and I grew to like him even though we haven't met.
Our solemnisation was held during the banquet in the present of all guests and was conducted in both English and Mandarin. I agree with others that Dr. Phua is stronger in Mandarin (but he is effectively bilingual, so no worries). Unlike most solemnisers who follow a formal script, Dr. Phua peppered the whole ceremony with humour and made everybody chuckle. His session is a bit long tho'... it took us about 35 mins. Think ours started a bit late yet Dr. Phua went on unhurriedly after completing all the formalities, giving us advice on how to maintain a good marriage (tho' some guests started to get a little restless as they couldn't wait for the banquet to start
).
For us, we did our own vows and Dr. Phua heard it the first time during our ceremony yet he was able to quote parts of the our vows in his speech... he was indeed very attentive. After the ceremony, while still on the stage, hb started to panic as he couldn't find the angbao, Dr Phua said softly to assure him, "No worries, no worries... we'll do this later... It's okay..." (Hb managed to find it in the end
).
A little friendly advice for BTBs to take note...
- Dr. Phua drives, so please prepare a complimentary parking coupon for him.
- His sessions are usually rather long so prepare at least 30 mins for it.
- There is no need to reserve a seat for him for the banquet (if you are having ROM & AD on the same day) as he would tell you he wants to go home to accompany his wife